Artist:David Burns
Song:Esther
Album:Two's Company:Original Cast
Actor David Burns was a top "second banana" in Broadway musicals. He was never a star but he usually had a featured song. He won two Tony awards. The 1953 show Two's Company is interesting because it was Bette Davis' only Broadway appearance. Burns was born June 22,1902 in New York City. He first appeared in the 1921 Broadway show Polly Preferred and went to London with the show. His first musical was Face the Music in 1932. He moved to Hollywood in 1934 doing mostly bit parts. He returned to Broadway in the 40s and appeared in Pal Joey and Oklahoma. The 1953 show Two's Company was built as a vehicle for Bette Davis when she wasn't happy with the movies she was offered after the success of All About Eve. Two's Company was a series of sketches written by Charles Sherman and Peter Devries with songs by Vernon Duke, Ogden Nash and Sammy Cahn. Despite poor reviews, the show did well until Bette was forced to pull out due to jaw surgery. Burns was among several second bananas who appeared in the show. RCA released a cast album which is available on CD from Sony Masterworks. Burns continued to appear on Broadway. He won Tonys for The Music Man and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. He also won an Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in the 1971 Hallmark Hall of Fame special The Price. David Burns died of a heart attack on Mar. 12, 1971 at age 68. He was on stage in Philadelphia performing in a trial run of the musical 70, Girls, 70. Here's a video of Esther by David Burns from Two's Company.
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